Ombudsman Liaison

This webpage is intended to assist anyone who wishes to exercise their right to make a complaint regarding an 'administrative decision' taken by the University to either:

a) Office of the Ombudsman

or

b) Office of the Ombudsman for Children.

A valid complaint exists where:

'a decision or action is taken which relates to the provision of service or the performance of a function (or the absence of either) which, it is claimed by the complainant, is not in accordance with the rules, practice, or policy of the University or the generally accepted principles of equity and good administrative practice and which adversely affects the complainant'.

The University can be made subject to a review by the Office of the Ombudsman, or the Office of the Ombudsman for Children, where an individual makes a compliant to either agency regarding their own, or others, treatment by the University.

However, a complainant will generally need to be able to demonstrate that they have exhausted all of the relevant University's internal complaints review procedures before approaching the Ombudsman.

Please see the 'Submitting a Complaint' tab below for guidance on the remit of the two Ombudsman's offices and an overview of how each carries out its respective tasks.   

A specific Ombudsman Office guide to complaints in regard to education services is attached below.   

The Office of the Ombudsman recommends that each public body under its remit, including universities, appoint a designated Ombudsman Liaison Officer (LO). The DCU Liaison Officer is the University Risk & Compliance Officer. 

The LO’s functions are to:

• Act as the initial DCU point of contact for the Ombudsman’s Office;

• Ensure that any written or oral enquiries from the Ombudsman’s Office are immediately directed to the appropriate sections of DCU for attention;

• Assist staff in meeting their obligation to respond to all queries made by the Ombudsman;

• Ensure that all time limits applying to requests for information, or for responses to complaints, from the Ombudsman are met;

• Ensure that all relevant files and documents are readily available for inspection when requested by the Ombudsman’s Office; &

• Ensure that the Ombudsman’s staff are provided with suitable facilities on any visits to DCU.    

Prior to making a complaint to either Ombudsman's office a complainant should, in the first instance, bring the complaint through the relevant internal complaints mechanism of the University. 

A guide for staff of the University and its campus companies to the role of the DCU Ombudsman Liaison Officer and a description of how the review process is managed on receipt of a query from the Ombudsman is provided below.